This is cashmink: FRAAS – The Scarf Company Opens Flagship Store in Joburg
FRAAS – The Scarf Company opened its South African flagship store Wednesday evening in The Mall of Africa in Midrand, Johannesburg. The name may be unfamiliar to many, but the company is the largest manufacturer of scarves in the world. The word ‘manufacturer’, however, does not do their craft justice. In fact, words generally fail to fully describe the creations you’ll find in the FRAAS boutique. Painstakingly prepared fabrics are finely woven into a range of scarves, wraps, ponchos and ruanas. Each item will enthrall you with a delicacy and a softness so incredible that you will find it virtually impossible to keep your hands to yourself. As you stroke over the collection of cashmere, silk and virgin wool, it feels as though the fabric caresses you back.
The FRAAS House is built on a near-religious passion for textiles. Established in Germany in 1880 by Valentin Fraas, the company has well over 100 years of innovation experience, woven into every new item. Andreas Schmidt, executive director and 5th generation head of the company, recounts how this continuous innovation process led to the creation of their unique, trademarked fabric known as cashmink: “We didn’t set out to make this or that. But we have always been working towards creating, towards discovering, something new and wonderful. When the weavers first presented this fabric, soft as cashmere with the sheen of mink, someone said ‘This is cashmink’.”
Cashmink® is a synthetic fabric and no animals are harmed in order to obtain the raw materials, making it a sustainable and ethical alternative to real furs.
If you’re bored with simply hanging your scarf around your neck, join FRAAS’s online community and keep an eye out for their new lookbook featuring SA fashionistas and styled by Joburg mode-maker Kennedy Molekwa:
Facebook: FRAAS
Twitter: @fraas_scarf
Instagram: @fraas.scarf
Krishen, fashion correspondent
